What’s In Your Stomach?
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With Mardi Gras recently passing, I was privileged to partake of a King Cake graciously offered by a coworker.  Originally European in tradition, the riche brioche-style cake is now also popular along the Gulf coast. King Cakes are recognizable from nearly 3 miles away by the patches of green, purple, and gold sugar that top . . . → Read More: What’s In Your Stomach?

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TGIF – Fish Versus “Sargassum”
TGIF – Fish Versus “Sargassum” avatar

From the always epic National Geographic youtube stream. Broadcast Spawn!Tweet#call_to_action h4{padding:0px 5px;}From the always epic National Geographic youtube stream. Broadcast Spawn!Tweet

San Diego red tide eaten alive by single-celled predator
San Diego red tide eaten alive by single-celled predator avatar

GET IN MAH BELLY! These huge predatory dinoflagellates have consumed smaller bioluminescent dinoflagellates. The red tide that has lit San Diego for several weeks is ending in a microscopic bloodbath. The above photo was taken by Linsey Sala, the manager of the Pelagic Invertebrates Collection at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. She writes: This image was . . . → Read More: San Diego red tide eaten alive by single-celled predator

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Anemones Fight Back Against Their Opressors
Anemones Fight Back Against Their Opressors avatar

From van der Meij and Reijnen (2011) Fig. 1 a–e The unsuccessful attempt of an edwardsiid sea anemone to feed on a Nembrotha lineolata. f A non-responsive Phyllidia ocellata caught by the tentacles of an edwardsiid sea anemone You may not realize that those unassuming slugs of the oceans, nudibranchs, are voracious predators in hiding. . . . → Read More: Anemones Fight Back Against Their Opressors

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TGIF: Portuguese Man-O-War Feeding
TGIF: Portuguese Man-O-War Feeding avatar

Despite being stung by one of them on a Gulf beach as a kid, Portugese Man-O-War’s are still one of my favorite organisms.  Hat tip to @echinoblog for the link to this video of a Portugese Man-O-War capturing a fish. Remember this species is colonial and made of four different polyps or zooids, working . . . → Read More: TGIF: Portuguese Man-O-War Feeding

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From The Editor’s Desk: Giant Squid=Awesomesauce
From The Editor’s Desk: Giant Squid=Awesomesauce avatar

In the following post I will enumerate the many ways in which current science repeatedly demonstrates that giant squids are awesomesauce. Awesome: (adj) amazing, awe-inspiring, awful, awing (inspiring awe or admiration or wonder) “New York is an amazing city”; “the Grand Canyon is an awe-inspiring sight”; “the awesome complexity of the universe”; “this sea, whose gently awful stirrings seem to . . . → Read More: From The Editor’s Desk: Giant Squid=Awesomesauce

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Angels in Antarctica
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“Don’t blink. Blink and you’re dead. Don’t turn your back. Don’t look away. And don’t blink.” – The Doctor The Weeping Angels are the monster of the week in one of my very favorite Doctor Who episodes. They look like saccharine angel statues…until they strike. The Weeping Angels could very well have been modeled . . . → Read More: Angels in Antarctica

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Cephalopod on Cephalopod Crime
Cephalopod on Cephalopod Crime avatar

New work in the Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society indicates that ammonites were likely preyed upon beaked squids.  The Chamouth Mudstone Formation on the British Coast is famous for its ammonite fauna from 183-195 million years ago.  Twenty percent of the ammonites were found to have damage toward the rear of shell.  This spot . . . → Read More: Cephalopod on Cephalopod Crime

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If Molluscs Could Communicate What Would They Say?
If Molluscs Could Communicate What Would They Say? avatar

Why don’t animal’s use wheels in locomotion? Why aren’t blue whales bigger? Why are there no freshwater starfish? Why are there no tree dwelling cephalopods? Why can’t my dog make a decent cocktail? These are the kinds of questions that intrigue me. Apparently I am not alone. Geerat Vermeij’s new paper “Sound reasons for silence: . . . → Read More: If Molluscs Could Communicate What Would They Say?

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The Tide Pool: Slow Colossal Squid?, Lantern Shark’s Light Switch, Longer is Faster (in Sperm)
The Tide Pool: Slow Colossal Squid?, Lantern Shark’s Light Switch, Longer is Faster (in Sperm) avatar

An occasional series where I briefly report 3 new studies and tell you why they are cool! ———————————- Oxygen consumption rates for various squids as a property of mass. How could not think of the colossal squid as a voracious hunter of the deep?? Contrary to popular opinion Rosa and Seibel argue that “… the . . . → Read More: The Tide Pool: Slow Colossal Squid?, Lantern Shark’s Light Switch, Longer is Faster (in Sperm)

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